Do you think you can tell someone is queer by listening to their voice? Dr Fabio Fasoli is here to tell us all about gay voice stereotypes, auditory gaydar, and voice-based bias. We talk about gay voice acting in 90s sitcoms, learn surprising facts about lesbian voices and employability, and discuss the intersection of foreign accents and gender-nonconforming voices.

References
Fasoli, F., Dragojevic, M., & Rakic, T. (In press). When voice signals nationality and sexual orientation: Speakers’ self-perceptions and perceived stigmatisation. Psychology of Language and Communication.

Fontanele, A. B., de Sousa, L., & Fasoli, F. (2022). Who does discriminate against gay-sounding speakers? The role of prejudice on voice-based hiring decisions in Brazil. Journal of Language and Social Psychology.

Galdi, S., Guizzo, F., & Fasoli, F. (2022). Media representation matters: The effects of exposure to counter-stereotypical gay male characters on heterosexual men’s expressions of discrimination. Group Processes and Intergroup Relations. Advanced online publication.

Masi, M., Mattavelli, S., Fasoli, F. & Brambilla, M. (In press). When faces and voices come together: Face width-to-height ratio and voice pitch contribute independently to social perception. European Journal of Social Psychology.

Fasoli, F., & Hegarty, P. (2020). A Leader Doesn’t Sound Lesbian!: The Impact of Sexual Orientation Vocal Cues on Heterosexual Persons’ First Impression and Hiring Decision. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 44(2), 234-255.

Cartei, V., & Reby, D. (2012). Acting gay: Male actors shift the frequency components of their voices towards female values when playing homosexual characters. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 36, 79-93.

Morandini, J. S., Beckman-Scott, D., Madill, C., & Dar-Nimrod, I. (2023). BIDAR: Can Listeners Detect if a Man Is Bisexual from His Voice Alone?. The Journal of Sex Research, 1-13. Advanced online publication.

Fabio Fasoli and Peter Hegarty “Straight talk about gaydar: How do individuals guess others’ sexual orientation?” https://www.in-mind.org/article/straight-talk-about-gaydar-how-do-individuals-guess-others-sexual-orientation

Do I Sound Gay?

David Thorpe

Straight categorisation bias

Sex Education

Will and Grace

David Sedaris’ Me Talk Pretty One Day

Matteo Lane

Mae Martin

Questions you should be able to respond to after listening:

1. What is ‘auditory gaydar’? Why does Fabio prefer to talk about ‘gay voice stereotype’?
2. What happens when people sound foreign and queer at the same time? What do Fabio’s studies suggest?
3. How do stereotypes about queer voices intersect with gendered expectations of voice and speech patterns?
4. Do you sometimes draw conclusions about someone’s identity through their voice? Do you assume you’re usually correct?
5. Can you think of an example of a gay voice stereotype in literature, film or series? What might the effect of such mediatised stereotypes be?